Boston’s iconic Stump listed on Historic England ‘at risk’ register

Boston Stump has appeared on Historic England’s ‘at risk’ register published today (Friday)

It joins Boston Town Centre which has 225 listed buildings

The church recently received a £160,000 grant which will go towards plans to apply for a further £1.2million

Boston’s iconic church has been named on a list of historic sites deemed ‘at risk’

St Botolph’s Church is a new entry in Historic England’s annual register of historic places ‘at risk’, published today (Friday), joining 455 ‘assets’ across the East Midlands this year.

The team at St Botolphs are fundraising in a variety of ways to try to raise this money and so conserve one of Lincolnshire’s iconic landmarks: they would also appreciate any help in achieving this ambitious target.

St Botolph’s Church spokesman

The move means the register now lists both the town centre and its church.

Buildings on the register are those which have been deemed as warranting ‘extra protection’ according to the document released on Friday.

The aim is to focus on those historic assets across the country most in need.

The medieval Stump, has been given a condition of poor and a priority of C - which is defined as ‘slow decay; no solution agreed’.

The Listed Place of Worship grade 1 building joins 10 other assets across the borough.

About the church, the document says: “The church suffers from a risk of flooding.

“Below ground drainage needs improving.

“The belfry roof at over 100ft needs re-covering and the tower west elevation awaits repointing and some stone repair.”

St Botolph’s Church’ was built from 1309-1390.

It’s tower was started in 1425 and the lantern was completed between 1510-20.

Works to restore the church have taken place in the 1840s, between 1928-33 and more recently.

In September, the church was awarded £160,000 by the to develop the church as a centre of heritage and community cohesion.

The ‘Passion for People’ project will enable the telling of stories of Boston’s role in local and international history and will hopefully attract more visitors to the town. Heritage Lottery Fund

It is hoped the church will be able to apply for a further £1.2million by the end of the year.

A spokesman for the church said the building was put on the register at the beginning of 2016.

They said: “This is because the west face of the stump tower needs urgent repairs with the approximate cost of £1,000,000.

“The team at St Botolphs are fundraising in a variety of ways to try to raise this money and so conserve one of Lincolnshire’s iconic landmarks: they would also appreciate any help in achieving this ambitious target.

“This project is set within a larger potential HLF project called A Passion for People. This project is to develop St Botolph’s in a way that is community facing and enriching, accessible for all as well continuing to be a place of beauty and historical interest for generations to come.”

The Boston Stump joins 10 ‘assets’ across Lincolnshire and a few more in East Lindsey as being listed as high risk.